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June 3, 2011

Transparency highlighted

OBSERVERS have highlighted increased transparency as a key issue for
economic development following allegations of corruption in Cambodia’s
mining industry this week.

The debate follows reports this week
that Australian miner OZ Minerals allegedly paid US$1.15 million to
people in 2009 who were reportedly the family members of officials at
the Ministry of Industry, Mines and Energy.

Both OZ Minerals and
MIME officials have denied any wrongdoing, but commentators have
discussed the need for transparency to secure the Kingdom’s investment
climate following the allegations.

Cambodian Centre for Human
Rights President Ou Virak said the eventual fallout from the affair
could mean there is a negative impact on the Kingdom’s economic
development going forward.

“Cases like this will act to
discourage investment from socially responsible investors and attract
interest from companies without principles and scruples,” he said.

“While
investment from this latter category may have short-term returns for
their Cambodian business partners, such returns come at the expense of
the long-term and sustainable development of Cambodia.”

Ou Virak
said corruption “is still a part of daily life in Cambodia,” but that
the country’s Anti-Corruption Unit now had “an opportunity to show that
it can and will take on government officials who are accused of corrupt
dealings.”

Some have said there is a need for further anti-corruption work in Cambodia.

George
Boden, a campaigner for watchdog group Global Witness, pointed to
“serious flaws” in Cambodia’s anti-corruption act, which was passed into
law last year.

Among them were the act’s rules for government
officials’ disclosure of assets, he said. Officials disclose only
certain assets, and the information is not made public. Also, officials’
spouses are not required to make the same disclosures.

However, ACU spokesman Keo Remy claimed the organisation had made noticeable achievements during its short lifetime.

He
noted fighting corruption in the education sector and the military, as
well as issuing warning letters to high-ranking officials, as examples.

“We have a lot of work to do to deal with these issues,” he said.

Keo
Ramy declined to comment on whether the ACU planned to investigate the
allegations against OZ Minerals, as it was against ACU policy to notify
the public or even the company or person in question.

“It could disrupt our investigation,” he said.

Some groups defended Cambodia’s attempts to fight corruption, adding the framework in place was still new.

Mam
Sambath, Chairman of Cambodians for Resource Revenue Transparency, said
the country “is making progress toward transparency” but that much more
remains to be done.

In regards to OZ Minerals, Mam Sambath said
none of the allegations had yet been proven. But if they turned out to
be accurate, he hoped the government would use the incident as a
learning experience in order to avoid similar problems.

He said
he doubted sophisticated investors would let an “isolated incident”
affect their views of the Kingdom’s investment climate.

“By
addressing the issue publicly and transparently, the Royal Government of
Cambodia will address the questions being raised on behalf of the
Cambodian people but also to the satisfaction of the broader investment
base,” he said.

OZ Minerals spokeswoman Natalie Worley denied
“any allegations of inappropriate business practices,” in response to an
email from The Post, adding, “Wherever we operate we act in accordance
with local regulations and with international standards.” And while
officials at MIME could not be reached for comment yesterday, they also
have denied any wrongdoing, according to reports.